Written by: Mikal Nielsen, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Transformation... we all want it! It's our nature. We want to transform our lives, other people's lives, our governments, our financial systems, the way we do business... well... almost everything.
It has become a buzz word, and with that, found its way into the world of business and team development as well.
Nothing wrong with that, unless it is simply a cooler word for change.
So let's pause for a moment and ask the question: What is transformation? Is transformation simply change or is it change on steroids or something entirely different? Or maybe an even better question: Why are we humans so attracted to transformation?
By diving into these questions, if we go deep enough, we will eventually come to an understanding, not only of transformation, but more importantly, what is the playground in which transformation takes place – the foundation of it.
I'm using the word occur here as in my experience, transformation tends to happen non-announced when all the ingredients are present and have been mixed together with the right way.
Sometimes this happens to me completely out of the blue and is quite a surprise. Other times I am consciously working hard towards it, but it never seems to happen on command.
The moment where transformation occurs, it is always a product of something that took place beforehand, whether the preparation was conscious or not. And to make it even more tricky, when the transformation takes place, I am not always aware of it at the time. It is only in hindsight that I can trace back to the moment when it took place and what caused it to happen.
But bottom line is, we want transformation and we deeply appreciate it when it happens. Why would that be?
And with that, we can then nurture it so that more true transformation can occur.
I believe it's because it is natural to us and is an essential part of our evolution as both individuals and humanity in general. We experience several big transformations as babies and young children, and as human beings, we naturally crave to keep experiencing them.
The transition from not being able to walk to walking is a transformation that appears to happen in an instant, but really was several months in the making. All the work the baby is doing to get to that place is not done specifically with walking as a goal for the baby, simply a natural unfolding of the evolutionary forces playing out in its magic little body.
And then one day, it all comes together in one moment and the baby takes its first step unaided. And that in turn becomes the foundation for further transformations that require walking, and on the journey goes with transformation after transformation.
Transformation is naturally desirable so we crave it, no matter how young or old we are. When we haven't experienced it for a while, we get unsettled, frustrated, angry or any other shade of unfulfilled.
With that, if we can accept that transformation is a natural and desirable phenomenon, it would make sense to ask what causes transformation to take place. What is the foundation, the blueprint for it?
To ease into that tricky question, we could start with an easier one: Is transformation spontaneous or planned for?
Hmmm... that didn't help much! It seems to be either or even a combination.
The first major transformation in my adult life was not planned and certainly not expected. It came as such a surprise that I didn't even notice it to start with, but when it hit me consciously a couple of days later, I knew my life would never be the same.
From there on, several big transformations have occurred, most of them planned for, but mostly manifesting in unexpected ways.
Coming back to the first question, was there something common that caused these transformations to happen?
Pondering that, here are the words that come up for me, in no particular order: Desire. Pain. Openness. Courage. Frustration. Longing. Willingness. Fear. Determination.
Quite frankly, looking back over some of the biggest transformations in my life, ALL of these were present in the process and on some occasions, all at the same time.
No wonder transformations are rare and long in between for most of us as adults.
Now, I'm not saying that I know specifically what the ingredients are and that I have the perfect definition of what transformation is. I'm just pondering and sharing a bit of my personal experiences in the hope that it may inspire you to ponder as well and in turn help you attract more transformations into your life.
With that said, I would like to broaden the scope of transformation beyond the individual and into groups of people, say a sports team or business team.
In recent times, the word transformation has found its way into the corporate culture. Transforming businesses. Transforming processes and structures. Transforming teams and team culture. Transforming management and leadership.
I have to admit it – transformation does sound a lot cooler than change. It has a better ring to it.
But, in reality, how much of the so-called transformation that is being achieved is actually transformation and how much is mere change?
Or, does it even matter whether it is change or transformation as long as people and businesses benefit? My short answer is no, as long as the change/transformation is positive and beneficial.
However, my long answer is yes, it makes a huge difference, provided we make a clear distinction between the two.
For me, they are distinctly different, both in my personal experience of transformation in my life as well as transformations I see in the world of business.
Now, my definition of transformation is not right or wrong or better or worse. It is simply my definition based on my personal experiences.
For me, transformation is a total shift. It is not changing something into something better, but into something that is radically different.
Let's take an example from the world of business. Henry Ford transformed the way we produced cars back in those days. It was an entirely new way of doing it. And up until recently, that's the way we have been mass producing cars. Well, that is until Elon Musk came along and yet again transformed it to the way he manufactures Tesla cars, again, a complete shift.
A personal example for me, would be when I did my first fire walking course. Standing in front of those unbelievably hot coals and frightened beyond measure, a total transformation took place in an instant when ALL heat vanished along will ALL fears, and I walked slowly and confidently over the red glowing coals, feeling no heat and with no burn marks to be found on my feet afterwards.
That in turn had a transformational effect on my life in more than one way. On one hand, it made me deeply aware of the incredible power of the human mind which opened up an entirely different life to me, with a big shift in confidence.
On the other hand, it transformed my professional career from computers to coaching personal growth, not a mere career change but a total shift. From banker and software developer to certified firewalking coach.
With all that said, I would love to hear your thoughts on what transformation is for you, so please do comment, message or email depending on where you see and read this article.
If you want a deeper conversation and support with creating transformations in your life or business, I offer a few complimentary Zoom sessions to BRAINZ Magazine readers. Spaces are very limited, so first in first served. Jump on this link to check if there are any spots available.
“Aim for change and you may get it. Aim for transformation and you will at least get change”.
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Mikal Nielsen, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Mikal's mission is to help high achievers awaken their natural wisdom to create profound fulfillment, deep peace of mind, and a perfect balance between everything truly important to them.
With a corporate background and starting and running 3 businesses, Mikal has spent the last 14 years coaching business founders, owners, and leaders to get more life out of life and more business out of business.
He is a mind mechanic with 35 years of experience in mindfulness, personal and spiritual growth, and 30 years of experience coaching others in these fields.
Mikal is an international speaker, certified firewalking coach, author of 5 books, and creator of Modern Meditation for busy people.
In addition to coaching entrepreneurs and business leaders, Mikal and his wife Kathy offer relationship coaching. With 30 years of living together and growing up with 3 children, they have learned and experienced a lot and have co-authored a book about their journey together.
Seeing how many relationships are struggling or have gone stagnant, they have decided to offer couples coaching
